Courtesy of our friends at Bradley University via Online Degrees we have an article and infographic about nurses working the late shift.  There is nothing more important than nurses learning how to be more resilient and helping them to focus on self care.  Anyone who works the night shift can benefit from this.  Read below: Many nurses put in 12-hour shifts, while others work night shifts. Although these types of schedules are expected as a requirement of their job, many nurses expose themselves to different types of health risks that often are associated with prolonged work hours and disruptions to a normal circadian rhythm. To avoid health issues, it is critical to understand the nature of the problem and provide nurses and other workers with ways to reduce risks and manage late-shift schedules.

Join me as I ask my colleague in The Resiliency Group, Karyn Buxman, if it is fact or fiction that humor can help us when faced with sudden, horrid disasters? Certainly, the devastating hurricanes that slammed Texas, Florida and Puerto Rico test everyone’s resiliency. This was followed by the largest firestorm in the history of California that killed 51 people and destroyed over 8,000 structures, leveling the City of Santa Rosa. Let’s see what she says. Learn more at https://www.eileenmcdargh.com and http://www.karynbuxman.com.

As a consultant to organizations that range from NASA to UPS, author and master trainer, Bill Treasurer offers an interesting perspective on why leaders might actually WANT to experience some "kicks in the butt". At the same time, Bill contends there are steps to minimize the number and severity of such "kicks". His newest book, A Leadership Kick in the Ass, is garnering great attention and, if you've watched the previous four interviews, you will know why!

Every leader will encounter different career hardships at different times. Join me in this third interview with Bill Treasurer, founder of Giant Leap Consulting. You'll hear Bill talk about how retirement "seems" the only option.

Gracias… Danke… Merci… Tack… Grazi... Obrigado… Arigatou and any other language you can imagine. In fact, there are ten different ways to say “thank you” in Japanese depending upon the context. I can find no nationality that does NOT have a phrase for thank you. Perhaps it is one of the wonderful things that sets us apart from the rest of the animal kingdom. To think that we consciously can utter a phrase which acknowledges what another person has done for us. Think of all the times we say, “thank you”.  I’ll bet you have said thanks to the grocery bagger, the bus driver, the flight attendant, the waiter, the neighbor who watered your plants, the child who passed the butter, the dry cleaner who mended your shirt, the executive assistant who completed the report, the UPS driver who brought the heavy package into the house, or the dentist who checked your teeth.Go on. Add more to the list. The American holiday started when colonists held a harvest feast with local natives in 1621. It became firmly rooted in 1861 when Abraham Lincoln declared an official Thanksgiving Day in late November. But we’re not the only country to celebrate a day of thanksgiving.  Nine other countries have an official holiday for gratitude. Here’s my point. We don’t need a special day to give thanks. Imagine the feelings of contentment, peace, optimism and community that could arise if we took time every day to offer very specific thanks. Specific is the operative word.  It’s not the off-the-cuff “thanks” that I mentioned above. Rather, it means being very specific about what someone has done and why it is of value to you. I am so grateful for my administrator and head of ground operations, Bonnie Davis.  Bonnie keeps me grounded, challenges my efforts, and demonstrates how much she cares about the work we do with her foresight and planning.  TeeJay, my web master, creates great designs and patiently listens to my ideas. He crafts the artistic style of my biggest calling card on the web and jumps in to fix whatever glitch can often happen in the digital world. My precious husband of 37 years, my Sweet William, jumps up and down and claps his hands when I get home. He helps with so much that I don’t know how to do much related to the house. And he’s a wonderful romantic who constantly lets me know that I am his world and visa versa. And of course, I am so grateful for you: my readers, colleagues and friends. Together we hold hands and make dust in the world, challenging each other, caring for each other, encouraging each other, and passing along positive gossip. Enjoy the holiday. and make it a holy day! PS: So blessed to have all but three of my children, grandchildren and Sweet William gathered around the table.  Muchas gracias!!!

Hurricanes took huge tolls on families in Texas, Florida and Puerto Rico. Fires swept through Northern California totally destroying 8,000 structures and taking 51 lives. My financial advisor and two clients lost everything. We discovered major electrical damage and potential fire in our house, resulting in a stunningly expensive need to rewire over two-thirds of our house. My best friend buried her husband of 64 years and within five months, also buried her 17 year-old grandson. Opioid addictions kill thousands and within a month after the massacre in Las Vegas, 300 more people in the U.S. are dead from guns. Are we exhausted yet? I believe so. In fact, Dr. Mary McNaughton-Cassill, a professor of psychology at the University of Texas in San Antonio and an expert on the connection between media consumption and stress calls it “compassion fatigue”. The steady 24-7 barrage of bad news is resulting in anxiety, lack of sleep, angry conversations and yes, depression. That’s a costly price to pay. And just like pulling money out of the bank, we all need to learn how to put “money” back in and regain some modicum of optimism and peace. Here are some tips: Restrict your flow of news, alerts, and text messages. As someone who starts the day with two newspapers and my phone, this is the hardest thing to do. On a smart phone, you can set time boundaries in which you receive no text calls except for emergencies from family members. Begin each day with at least 10 minutes of silence and meditation. I have found an app called Insight Timer. While there are guided meditations, I prefer just the single clear sound of a basu bowl. Set it for 10 minutes (or longer) and just sit still and breathe. There is also a list of music that is calming. Take a break with uplifting and/or fun videos. Upworthy always has small videos of everything from light-hearted fun to uplifting stories. Cute Emergency is a stream of memes and videos all about animals. Determine which causes most touch your heart. Every day I get requests for everything from Mercy Ships to the Red Cross—and always with pictures that break your heart. I have found two organizations that I have researched and that support children and families. These I pay attention to. The rest I discard. Spend time with loved ones. And that does not mean sitting around the dinner table with everyone on their phones. Put the phones AWAY!  Begin a practice of asking everyone for one happy moment or something that struck them as funny. It’s a great practice that can rewire your brain from the negative connections to positive ones. End each day with gratitude. When I hear myself stressing over the cost of all manner of home emergencies, I must stop and remind myself, at least I do have a home. And yes, I will donate to the cities devastated by all these natural disasters. So, take care of yourself first. You are the only one who really can!

Renowned leadership expert, Jim Kouzes, calls Bill Treasurer's newest book "one of the most unique and value books you will read all year." In this second interview, join me as I ask the founder of Giant Leap Consulting about a concept in his book A Leadership Kick in the Ass. This concept revolves around the courage it takes for a leaders to surrender!

Today I have a featured blog post on Inspire Me Today and I'm going to share a bit of it below but you can read the rest on the Inspire Me Today website!  Thank you to the staff of Inspire Me Today for featuring me! Living In The Now If I could share 500 words to inspire, this is the important wisdom I'd want to pass along to others... I’ve been called the “Woman of Independent Means.” Funny, but it seems to capture all the vigor and verve of self-sufficiency, achievement and hard core measurable goals which marked my passage and intentions upon entering the decade of the 90s. I determined to change the world, to make quantum leaps in financial gain, to publish and to produce. After all, 40 was upon me and time a’fleeting. Now, closer to 65 than to 40, I realize that the better triumphs have not come from reaching these goals but in the shadows and nuances of missing them. When things have not gone as planned and I am forced to stop in pain and confusion, I learn and grow more. And I discover how very dependent we are upon an external world to help us see meaning and discover the deeper purpose behind the seemingly meaningless. It is impossible to truly be a “woman or man of independent means.” Read the rest of my post at Inspire Me Today!

I am sick. OK, having read the headline you are probably shaking your head and muttering, “You sure are. No one loves ironing.” But I am physically sick this week: chills, deep congestion, ear infection, nausea, dizziness and a general all-over body fatigue. It’s a catch 22: lay down and cough away, risking pneumonia or move around so phlegm doesn’t gather but risk the nausea and dizziness from my ears. Ironing is a solution. I take but a few steps to the laundry room, grab pillow cases, and let the warm steam smooth their wrinkles and soothe my soul. In 10 minutes, I am back in bed. As I did that today, I realized that ironing has always been a comforting activity for which I am grateful. Mom started me on Dad’s handkerchiefs. Remember those? Irons did not have steam so all clothes were rolled in a damp towel and then pulled out to be pressed over and over again until the moisture and wrinkles went away. I graduated to pillow cases and eventually to shirts. The seams had to lay down flat, the back placket went first, then the sleeves and lastly the body of the shirt. In the days of spray starch, I’d end up with six or more shirts on hangers, all crisply saluting my effort. I recently read that Sandra Bullock irons when she feels stress. I get that. When nothing in your life works, when you can see no results, ironing offers immediate return on the investment of little time. I believe it’s the small things that we do that often offer larger rewards. So when my body is giving out, I can at least iron. What do you do? PS: Yes, I still iron pillowcases!

Bill Treasurer is the author of A Leadership Kick in the Ass and a consultant for over 20 years to firms that want to grow courageous leadership. In this series, join me as I talk with Bill about how to help leaders who are oblivious to the negative effects of their own behavior.

Resilient workplaces and resilient relationships are the result of a power give-and-take exchange of energy. Listen to award-winning author, Achim Nowak, as we discuss what you can do to foster that energy exchange.

Can a leader spark energy in others? Join me and Ted X Speaker, Achim Nowak, for a quick insight into what you can do to re-energize others.